DOC Interest Arbitration Update: Day 4

Host of rank and file members provide first hand accounts of working for DOC

In the fourth day of our interest arbitration hearing, several veteran DOC staff provided firsthand testimony of the challenges they face working at the Department.

Charlotte Weimann, a 33-year DOC Corrections Officer at WCCW, spoke about BFOQ issues at the facility. Charlotte is one of the most senior staff at Purdy, and still is assigned mandatory overtime.

James Rollins, a 24-year DOC Classification Counselor 3 at AHCC, spoke about the importance of range increase for Sergeants and CC3s.

Rick Mate, a nine-year DOC Sergeant at OCC and a member of your bargaining committee, spoke about the need for premium pay for shift commanders at stand-alone minimums.

I want to thank everyone who testified this week, especially the bargaining unit members. Several of your colleagues traveled across the state to appear before the arbitrator. It is important the arbitrator hears directly from DOC employees about the challenges you face on a daily basis. This can have a significant impact on his final decision.

I also want to provide some clarity on our position regarding premium pay. While we have asked for specific increases for some positions, our priority remains maximizing the across-the-board wage increase for all classifications. Our position is that nobody should be left out.

Today is the final day of our hearing. Our Union’s former Secretary-Treasurer, Tracey Thompson, who we have retained for interest arbitration, will provide our closing argument.

We will send you a final update from the hearing next week. We expect the arbitrator to make his decision later this month.

If you have questions about the interest arbitration process, you can access our FAQ page on our website here.